


Swan Queen Week: Domesticity

by swanqueenfic13



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Confessions, Domesticity, F/F, Illness, Insecurities, Swan Queen Week, Swan Queen Week Summer 2016, Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-08
Updated: 2016-08-14
Packaged: 2018-08-07 13:12:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 5,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7716082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swanqueenfic13/pseuds/swanqueenfic13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A day late, but enjoy swen! Viva la swan queen!</p><p>Note: All of these stories take place in the same universe at different points in time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day 1: Confessions

“Henry Swan-Mills, you’d better stop lying to me this instant,” Regina snapped. His jaw was clenched as he glared at her and it felt like he was ten years old all over again, hating her, convinced she was the Evil Queen- which she was, but hey they’ve moved past that. But still, a flicker of fear runs through Regina. Should she be yelling? Will he hate her and run away? But no, she’s married to his other mother now, so there’s no chance she’d take him away. 

“But mom, I’m not lying!” he insists. His voice is much deeper, and he’s taller which also helps to remind Regina that this Henry does not hate her. “I didn’t eat the last of the ice cream, or those apple turnovers you made for the school bake sale!”

“I’m not mad about the food, Henry. Am I upset that you gorged yourself on sweets? Yes, because I’d prefer you took care of your body but you’re 16 years old now, and I assume you can make good choices. But I am mad that you’re lying to my face,” she says, forcing herself to be calm. She’d rather her voice radiate disappointment than fury.

“I’m not!” His voice cracks when he yells and Regina has to try not to smile because she’s still angry.

“Henry Daniel Swan-Mills, go to your room. You’re grounded until you stop lying to me,” she decides.

“But mom-” he protests.

“Go!” She points toward the stairs and he spins on his heel, stomping away. “And no electronics!” With a wave of her hand, his phone disappears in a puff of cloud smoke. When he gets to his room, he discovers his TV, X-Box, and computer are also gone.

“This sucks,” he groans, falling onto his bed. Now what is he supposed to do instead of his homework?

 

“Honey, I’m home,” Emma grins. This was her favorite part about being married: coming home at the end of every work day, tired, sore and exhausted, to a house that smelt of a home-cooked meal, and a wife waiting on the couch or in the bedroom. Regina was on the couch tonight, rubbing her temples. Her latest book was sitting open on her lap, Regina’s glasses perched on top of it. “Rough day?” She comes to pull Regina onto her lap, kissing her wife’s temples and massaging her scalp. Regina sighs contentedly and leans into Emma.

“Terrible. Henry’s angry at me because I had to punish him,” she groans.

“What’d he do?”

“Ate the last of the ice cream- practically a pint- and the apple turnovers I made for his school bake sale. When I asked him about it, he lied! Right to my face!” Because of they way they’re sitting, Regina can’t see Emma’s cheeks turning pink or her embarrassed grin. She can feel Emma’s hands still in her ministrations. “What?” She turns to look at Emma. “Why do you look like that?”

“I ate that stuff. I stopped by on my lunch break,” Emma winces.

“You ate lunch with me in Granny’s,” Regina corrects.

“Okay, fine, so I stopped by while I was on patrol. But we both know nothing happens in Storybrooke besides magic stuff!” Emma confesses guiltily. “So, we should un-ground the kid because he didn’t lie.”

“Emma! That was a pint of ice cream! And those apple turnovers? I spent hours baking those for the school!” Emma feels like a teenager herself.

“I know, I know,” she mutters. Sighing nervously, she adds, “I’m sorry. I didn’t… think about that. I just, y’know, I-I forgot about what a bitch cravings are.” It takes Regina moment to comprehend.

“Cravings?” she questions. “As in… the potion took? You’re pregnant?” Beaming, Emma nods. With the help of the Blue Fairy, they had been trying to get pregnant for a few months. After first confirming that the effects of Regina’s infertility were irreversible, they worked to impregnate Emma with a potion. Finally, it seemed to be working. According to Emma’s estimation, she was two months along.

“We’re having a baby,” Emma whispers excitedly.

“Oh my God!” Regina laughs. She sobers for a moment. “Just because you’re pregnant doesn’t mean you don’t have to help me make more pastries for that bake sale. And now I have to go apologize to Henry. Should we tell him about his new sibling?”

“When I’m farther along,” Emma decides. She grins and kisses her wife. “So you’re not mad I ate the food?”

“Mmm… No,” Regina whispers. She kisses Emma. “But only because of that cute little baby in there.” She rests one hand on Emma’s belly and presses a gentle kiss to it. “Now, I have to go un-ground our son.” Sighing, Regina runs up the stairs. She supposes she could have had a little more faith in Henry.


	2. Day 2: Travel

“It’ll be fun,” Emma argues. “We can go just for a few days. I think the girls would like to see where their mommy grew up.” Their daughters Lucy and Emily, five and three respectively, were fascinated by the book with all of their families stories in it. After some of their interactions with magic, the Storybrooke gang had found a way to make travel between the realms easier. With the help of Tiny, the giant, they regrew hundreds upon hundreds of magic beans. All anyone had to do to cross the realms was bargain with Tiny, or his Storybrooke counterparts, the dwarves. 

“Yes, but there are monsters there: ogres and wraiths and demons and… goblins! And the Enchanted Forest was… not my favorite place to grow up. I don’t have a lot of good memories there,” Regina argues. Emma takes her wife’s hand, leading her to sit on the bed.

“I know, but we can make new memories there. And besides, you know that the knights and all the people who moved back there have gotten rid of all the ogres. We can take them to all the places you had good memories, like the stables and stuff?”

“I don’t know, Emma,” Regina hedges.

“I won’t make you go if it’ll make you uncomfortable or unhappy, but I really think it might be good for you. Like, closure or something?” Biting her lip, Regina releases a breath.

“Alright. We can take them to visit your parents’ summer castle for a weekend during your parents’ annual visit. They can play at being knights like their cousin Neal, ride horses, and be princesses.” Emma kisses her wife’s temple.

“I think we can have a good time there.”

“We should prepare the girls for travelling by magic bean,” Regina snorts after a moment. “It won’t be anything like travelling by plane, or car. It’s not smooth or comfortable.”

“Yeah. And we should make sure they don’t wear any of their princess outfits on the way there. Emily will sob if she falls and gets her pink dress dirty,” Emma smirks. She doesn’t understand how  _ her _ daughter could be so… pink and frilly when Emma grew up in denim and hand-me-down sneakers. But, she supposes Regina’s royal upbringing did color their daughters’ love of princesses.

“Do you think we could see Henry while we’re there?” Henry had taken his role as the author very seriously and, following his graduation from college, he had started travelling through the realms to record stories. He had recently seemed to be settling in his grandparents’ castle to record the goings-on of the Enchanted Forest.

“Of course,” Emma smiles. “See? Aren’t you glad we decided to travel?”


	3. Day 3: Insecurities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During a drunken hookup, body insecurities are revealed.
> 
> TW for implied/ referenced child abuse

They were drunk. It was the night of Red’s engagement party, and the girls had been partying. They were both more hands-on when they were drunk, sharing giggly kisses and stolen hugs. Eventually, this progressed to going home together with the intention of more than a few kisses. Emma was drunker than Regina (wasn’t she always) but neither woman was sober enough to drive home. As they walked in the direction of Mifflin road, Regina slung her arm around Emma, both to hold herself up and bring Emma closer.

“Are we really doing this?” Regina asks as they enter the mansion. Henry had been dispatched to spend the night with his friend Nick, so they were blissfully alone. In answer to Regina’s question, Emma pushed her against the door to close it, capturing Regina’s lips with her own. Hands are roaming and soon, both women are panting with desire, too distracted to try and climb up the stairs. Without breaking the kiss, Regina poofs them both up to the bedroom and they’re sitting on the bed.

“Can I?” Emma pants,tapping Regina’s blouse. Grinning, Regina nods. Emma’s hands begin to shake as she works at the buttons until Regina’s shirt falls away, revealing tantalizing caramel skin, and plump breasts encased in a bright red bra. “Jesus,” Emma gasps, taking in all of Regina.

“Yes?” Regina smirks. “What do you need?” Emma wants to make some witty comment, but all she can do in her inebriated, aroused state is moan. “Should I… take this off too?” She taps at her skirt and Emma nods eagerly. With one swift motion, the skirt is on the other side of the room. Emma’s hands run over smooth skin without her brain telling them to. “Now it’s your turn,” Regina smiles, hands reaching out for the edge of Emma’s dress.

“Wait!” Emma shouts, jumping back. She stands, crossing the room to flick off the light, plunging them into darkness. She’s barely even back to the bed before regina’s flicked her wrist, turning the lights back on.

“Why?” she whispers. Emma doesn’t say anything, just snaps her fingers, concentrating on the magic to turn the lights off again. “Emma,” Regina chides, turning them back on.

“I don’t like the lights on. Kills the mood,” Emma breathes, kissing Regina. While Emma’s got her distracted, she flicks the lights off with her fingers. When Emma moves to kiss Regina’s neck, she speaks again.

“I think it enhances the mood. So I can see you better,” Regina hums. She turns them back on.

“Stop that!” Emma shrieks. “Lights off!” Regina, sensing her distress, pushes back to study Emma.

“Why?” Huffing, Emma crosses her arms over her chest.

“I just… I’d prefer it if you can’t see me,” she whispers, not looking directly at Regina.

“What? But you’re beautiful!” Regina protests.

“Pfft, maybe with clothes on,” Emma snorts. “I’ve got stretch marks from when I carried Henry, and old scars from the foster parents who used me as a punching bag. I’ve got freckles and cellulite and… You’re perfect. So, it would really kill my ego if I could actually  _ see _ the differences between us,” Emma explains. She hates that the buzz is wearing off now. Her head is pounding, and she feels both drunk and hungover at the same time. This  _ sucks _ . And now Regina is looking at her like she’s a wounded puppy, and the pity actually hurts.

“Emma, those things are… A part of life. Those stretch marks are something I  _ wish _ I could have because I can’t have children. And believe me, if I didn’t have magic, I’d have more scars than skin. And  _ everyone _ has a little cellulite. You’re so fit, and tight, and it doesn’t mean anything. And trust me, I like your little freckles,” Regina assures her, tracing one finger over Emma’s arms and chest.

“You’re j-just saying that,” Emma shudders, closing her eyes.

“Now,  _ Em-ma _ , you know I say what I mean,” Regina purrs. She plants a kiss on Emma’s forehead. “So what do you say? Let me… see you? I’ll make it worth your while.” Emma nods, gulping. And slowly, very slowly she lets Regina undress her. And she doesn’t regret it for a moment because Regina is  _ worshipping her _ and it really makes her feel silly for fighting this.


	4. Day 4: Illness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kids get sick a lot, and sometimes they get their parents sick, too.

“Emma, what are you doing?” Regina laughs. Emma shoots her a dirty look from the bathtub where she is currently laid up. The water was room-temperature now and barely up to Emma’s waist as she laid down. She was fully dressed and submerged, shushing Regina.

“It was the only way to get her to stop crying. Lucy has been screaming non-stop for thirty-six hours while you were dealing with town business in Portland,” Emma grunts quietly. Lucy, six months old now, was lying on Emma’s chest. Her skin was glistening from where she must have entered the water and her big blue eyes were closed. The little tuft of dark brown hair on her head puffed out every time Lucy exhaled.

“You know I have to bring town records to the statehouse once a year. It keeps the government from coming down to Storybrooke. I was only gone for a weekend. When did this start? Does she have a fever? Runny nose?” Regina whispered now, running one hand over her daughter’s clammy forehead.

“Fever, runny nose, cough, not hungry, crying all the time, not sleeping. It started a few hours after you left. At first, I just worried she didn’t like me and wanted you. After a whole night of screaming, I took her to the doctor who said it’s just a cold. They said I should run a warm bath, but she refused to get in unless I got in with her,” Emma sighs.

“How long have you been in there?” Regina asks. Emma shrugs.

“What time is it?” Regina laughs lightly. “How did you do this with Henry? I feel like… I gave her some children’s tylenol to try and bring down the fever, but it’s not doing anything to make her stop coughing.”

“The first few weeks I had him, he cried constantly. I thought he had a disease, or something,” Regina smiles. Lucy stirs but Regina rubs her back and her eyes close again. “But it’s tough. Kids get sick and they can’t tell us what’s wrong. We feel ineffectual, but we do the best we can. Now, you look flushed, dear. How do you feel?” Regina runs the back of her hand over her wife’s cheeks.

“My head hurts like a bitch, and my nose is all stuffed up,” Emma groans. 

“And you feel like you have a fever.” Regina purses her lips. Standing, she reaches to pick up their daughter, swaddling her in a nearby towel and holding Lucy to her chest. “Does your throat hurt? Any coughing?”

“Mhmm,” Emma groans. Standing, she has to resist the urge to shake off the water droplets like a wet dog.

“Henry staying with your parents?” Emma nods as Regina hands her a towel. She strips off the wet clothes, leaving them on the edge of the tub as she wraps herself in the towel. “Good. You have Lucy’s cold. So, run a hot bath while I get her down for a nap. You took care of her, now I’ll take care of you.” Emma leans in for a kiss but Regina leans back, smirking.

“Hey, you’re supposed to be nice to the sick people,” Emma whines.

“I can’t get sick, too. Not when I’m caring for you  _ and _ a baby,” Regina titters. Shifting Lucy in her arms, she playfully shoves Emma back towards the tub. “Run a warm bath and I’ll be back with some cold medicine.” Grumbling, Emma drains the tub.

As Regina puts their daughter down for a nap, she can’t help but smile at the little family they’ve been creating.


	5. Day 5: Sleeping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on an episode of "Friends" (I don't remember which one)

Emma Swan loved her girlfriend. She loved everything about Regina. She loved the way Regina was so protective of their son. She loved the way Regina scrunched up her nose when Emma kissed her forehead. She even loved the way Regina loved to snuggle when she slept. Mostly. 

Regina Mills was a snuggler, a koala bear when she slept. She liked being the little spoon even though she and Emma were about the same size. Regina slept best when Emma had her arms wrapped around her. But Emma liked space when she slept. She preferred to cocoon herself in blankets rather than other people. How was she supposed to tell Regina that she didn’t  _ want _ to snuggle all night?

“What do I say, Rubes? ‘Sorry, Gina, I just can’t sleep with you  _ smothering _ me all night?’” Ruby and Dorothy had come back to this world with the help of a magic bean for their wedding, and Emma had liked having her best friend back.

“No! Absolutely not! That’ll get you a fireball straight to the ass,” Ruby laughs. Dorothy was out with Snow, getting acquainted with all of Ruby’s Storybrooke friends while Emma and Ruby were drinking at Granny’s after it had closed for the night.

“No shit Sherlock,” Emma snorts. “What do I do?”

“I was always a fan of the old ‘hug and roll,’” Ruby sighs as she takes a sip of Granny’s best ale.

“The what?” Emma stands up to fill her glass, finding the world is slightly askew and her balance is not what she thought it was. She decides to switch to water.

“Hug and roll. Y’know!” Emma just shakes her head. Ruby sighs. “Hug for her, roll for you! Once she’s asleep, you giver her a nice hug, a good squeeze for her. Then, you roll away and you’ve got the space you need to sleep.”

“Just… hug and roll?” Emma asks.

“Yeah, lemme show you. Come over here.” Emma goes into the booth and awkwardly lets Ruby wrap her arms around her. “Hug for her.” Ruby squeezes Emma tightly. “Roll for you.” And she rolls away, pulling her arm with her.

“And that works?” Emma asks. She moves back to her side of the table.

“100% success rate for me. I had plenty one night stands as Ruby, and lots of ‘em liked to snuggle. I don’t. So, yeah. That should help you next time you and Regina have a… sleepover.” She smirks and Emma kicks her, but she files the information away for later that night.

 

Sure enough, Emma is snuggling with Regina that night. They were both naked, and while Emma loved the skin to skin contact, the intimacy of her touch, she didn’t like the heat. It was too… too warm to sleep like this. But, remembering Ruby’s words, she patiently waited for Regina to fall asleep. Regina’s breathing had evened out, and she was mumbling softly.

“Gina, you awake?” she whispers. No reply. So, very carefully, she hugged Regina close. Her girlfriend sighed happily and Emma smiled. This could work. Next, she rolled away carefully. But Regina turned over in her sleep, closer to Emma, trapping Emma’s arm beneath her body. “Shit,” she murmured.

_ What do I do? What do I do? Ruby didn’t prepare me for this! _ Emma thought frantically.  _ Okay, uh, try another hug and roll? _ She hugs her again before trying to roll away but Regina just snuggles onto Emma’s arm, trapping her there.  _ Shit. Shit. Okay, just keep rolling. Pull your arm back. There, just… a little harder… almost… perfect! _ She yanks her arm out from under Regina, silently praising herself when she realizes Regina is now on the floor.  _ Shit _ .

“Ow!” Regina yelps. She comes back up holding her wrist. “What the hell, Emma?” Wincing, Emma stands up and grabs her wrist, healing it the way Regina had taught her to.

“I was trying to do the hug and roll,” she admits.

“The what? Ouch, okay, that’s better.”

“The hug and roll. I… It’s stupid, but… I can’t sleep when you’re snuggling me. So… I tried to do the hug and roll. A hug for you, and a roll away for me, so I can sleep. But-but-but I never meant to hurt you! And I’m sorry!” Emma whimpers nervously.

“You… don’t like the way we sleep together?” Regina repeats softly.

“No, no, that’s not it! It’s just… well, I do better when I have a little bit of… space, like, to breathe?” Emma explains. Regina pouts.

“Why didn’t you just tell me?”

“Well… you like to sleep all wrapped up in each other, but I don’t. And I didn’t want to make you feel bad, so… I lied.”

“I wish you had told me the truth. Maybe we can… try different sleeping arrangements? I don’t want you to suffer,” Regina says carefully.

“Like what?”

“Like… we hold each other while we’re awake, but when we’re asleep we have our own sides of the bed? Or…something?”

“Um, yeah, okay? That… Let’s do that. We can snuggle until we fall asleep.” Smiling, Regina nods. Once they’re settled, Regina wraps her arms around Emma, startling her. “What’re you doing?” she asks lightly.

“Trying something new. Now, shut up and let me be the big spoon,” Regina teases, kissing her girlfriend. She hugs Emma and nestles her head on Emma’s shoulder. As they fall asleep, Regina traces lazy patterns on Emma’s stomach and arms. When they wake up, Emma is surprised to discover that she actually liked being held when she sleeps. 


	6. Day 6: Arguments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When they argue, sometimes they revert. And one certain Swan-Mills is sick of it.

Emma isn’t certain how it started. It was probably innocent enough, the way all married arguments seemed to start. Maybe they were fighting about what Henry was doing at school (Emma thought drinking in college was like a rite of passage but Regina hated the thought of it). Or maybe it was about raising their daughter Lucy with a religion (Emma figured they should just let Lucy decide when she’s older, but Regina though some type of faith might help ground her). Or maybe it was about adding another child to the family (Emma thought that Lucy was too young to consider adding another, but Regina was eager to expand their family). The point is, it started out simply enough.

It was all little snipes. Harsh words that neither really meant. Maybe it got angrier. Words were held in over days, simmering just beneath the surface. Every slight or mistake was catalogued, stoking the fire beneath the cauldron. Until one day, one thing made it all bubble over and the simmering, the stewing turned into screaming and fighting. Mary Margaret had taken Lucy for a walk in the sunshine so there was nothing holding back their shouts.

“I don’t even know what your problem is, Regina!” Emma shouts. Her hands are flying as she tries to convey her frustration. But where Emma is wild and unrestrained in her anger, Regina is still, controlled, and clenched. Her lips are pursed and her hands are balled into fists.

“My problem, Miss Swan-” Emma makes a little noise and turns away. Regina narrows her eyes. “What? What’s your problem now, Miss Swan?”

“Stop that!” Emma growls. She steps up quickly, getting into Regina’s face. When Regina steps back, fear in her eyes, Emma turns away sadly. “Just, stop. Don’t do that.”

“Do what?” Regina asks. Her chin is held high and there’s defiance in her words.

“Don’t you dare… fucking call me ‘Miss Swan.’ It’s bullshit and you know it. Because I’m not Miss Swan anymore. I’m  _ Mrs. Swan-Mills. _ I was Miss Swan when you hated me when I first came to town. When you wouldn’t let me see Henry, when he thought you hated him, when I was miserable. Miss Swan is what you called me when we… were  _ enemies _ . And it’s a really low fucking blow for you to call me that now. We’ve been through too damn much,” Emma rambles. Regina just stands there.

“Are you done?” she asks, eyebrow raised. Emma nods nervously. She hadn’t meant to tell her wife everything like that, to just blurt it out. Emma is fidgeting, waiting for Regina to speak, breathe, do  _ something _ to let her know whether Emma should be packing her bags and finding a hotel room for the night. Finally, her expression softens and she reaches out to grip Emma’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly. “I’m  _ so _ sorry.”

“I- sorry? For- what?” Emma doesn’t really get how blowing up at her wife earns her an  _ apology. _

“I didn’t realize I was doing that, calling you that. I wasn’t aware it caused such issues for you. I suppose, on some level, I was trying to distance myself from you and hurt you and I am  _ so _ , so unbelievably sorry. Can you forgive me?”

“O-of course,” Emma stammers. “I just… That was not a very good time for me, and I don’t like to remember it. But I’m sorry, too. I don’t even know what we were arguing about, but I’ve said some things I regret.”

“And that is forgiven.” Regina kisses her knuckles, pulling her to sit down on the couch. They just hold each other, tracing patterns on their skin for a while. “So,” she smiles, breaking the silence, “you really seem to like being a Swan- _ Mills _ don’t you?”

“I  _ love _ it,” Emma corrects, booping Emma on the nose with one finger. “And I love  _ you _ .”

“I love you, too,” Regina smiles. Because as angry as they get, no matter how the argument starts, it always ends the same way.


	7. Day 7: Physical Intimacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are a thousand ways to be intimate, not the least of which is sex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's very short, I'm sorry. I don't really know. I don't write smut and I was really stuck with this one. I might revisit it but I really wanted to get something up for day 7 of sqw

It was the little things, the ways they always touched. Circles traced with thumbs on the backs of hands. Patterns drawn on arms and legs during movies and family dinners. Hands splaying out on skin beneath clothes in public just to feel the touch of skin again. Hands that fisted in hair during sex. Sharp teeth marks soothed by the soft lick of a tongue, the kiss of impossibly soft lips. Gentle and rough, but always loving. There were a thousand ways that the Savior and the Queen were intimate, gentle and loving. And they loved each and every one of them.


	8. Day 8: Coming Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Various examples of Regina and Emma coming out to their loved ones.

Henry was the first to know, of course. As soon as his mothers had gone on three dates and decided it was a serious relationship, they sat him down at the kitchen table. They were nervous, unsure of how he would react, fidgeting. Regina was convinced Henry would revert to his ten year old self, hating his mothers for keeping something from him. Emma was just worried he would be mad they kept it from him for the past few weeks.

“You’ve only been on three dates?” he asked, shrugging. “I’ve thought you guys were dating for, like, three months.”

“And you’re okay with that?” Emma confirms.

“You don’t hate us?” Regina adds.

“No! Ma, Mom, I’m just glad you guys are happy. I’m glad you’re finding your happy ending, Mom,” he grins. He lets them hug him (too tight) and hugs them back, smiling. “Plus, I’m the Author so I started noticing things on the pages.” His mothers laugh. “Can I go play video games now?”

 

Telling Emma’s parents was next on the list. They waited a bit longer, until two weeks after their two month anniversary. They were at the big family dinner, a monthly event that rotated locations. This month, it was at Emma’s house. All of the adults were sitting around the table drinking wine and discussing their daily lives while Henry had taken Neal, over a year old now, upstairs to play a little before bedtime.

“So, Mom, Dad, there’s something I need to tell you,” Emma begins.

“Are you pregnant?” her mother asks.

“No! Who would’ve gotten me pregnant? I broke up with Hook months ago,” Emma scoffs. Her mother shrugs as if to say  _ shit happens _ . “No, Regina and I need to tell you something. We’ve been, well- I mean, um-”

“We’re dating. Each other,” Regina interrupts. Emma had been practicing a simple but informative speech, practicing how to tell her parents. But now, she was floundering.

“Oh, okay,” David nods.

“That’s it?” Emma asks.

“I mean, you’re our daughter, and Regina’s our friend now. It might take me a bit because she was technically my stepmother once upon a time, but we were so close in age that it was never a traditionally motherly relationship and she was forced into the role. Plus, we kind of saw you guys on a date in town last week. You guys were kissing behind Granny’s, so…” Snow trails off. Emma just opens and closes her mouth wordlessly.

“Hey, Regina, I heard there’s a new restaurant opening up down on the water. Tiana’s Place? You know about that?” David asks after a few moments. They move onto small talk easily, but Emma is still reeling about the sudden change in topic.

 

After that, it was just their friends left to tell. They told Maleficent and Lily at the same time, over drinks at the Rabbit Hole. Both women squirmed a bit, but were happy for their friends. Later that night, Emma had been worried about their hesitant reaction. Regina had pointed out that it was probably because Regina had been in a relationship of sorts with Mal, while Lily had been Emma’s first love. It was probably strange for the mother-daughter dragon duo to realize that the women they both dated were know dating.

Regina told Belle over a cup of tea in the library. Belle’s immediate reaction was to gush and hug Regina. Then, she brought Regina over to the LGBT section of the library to show her their new fiction books. 

Emma told Ruby over drinks at Ruby and Dorothy’s housewarming party (the two women had decided to settle in Storybrooke after their wedding). Dorothy was busy making nice with Belle since she was Ruby’s best friend. Emma had apologized later, worried Ruby would feel Emma was making the night all about herself, but Ruby had just grinned and slapped Emma on the back. Ruby declared that she had called it ages ago and was just glad she and Dorothy were no longer the only lesbians in Storybrooke.

After that, most of the important people had been told. Emma and Regina decided after that point that it could travel by word of mouth and by sight. They went on public dates and plenty of people had seen them kiss each other hello and goodbye. A select unlucky few (or lucky, depending on how one viewed it) had caught the pair kissing in the Mayor’s or Sheriff’s office on numerous occasions.

 

When they got married, they didn’t bother with so many separate comings-out. Emma and Regina sat down her parents and their son and told them. Then, they sent out save-the-date cards to the rest of town. It was much simpler that way.

“We should have just sent coming out cards the first time around,” Emma sighed. Regina just laughed, tending to agree. Much less stressful this way.


End file.
